By our staff reporter
President Bola Tinubu on Wednesday suspended the chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Abdulrasheed Bawa, from office indefinitely.
The indefinite suspension was announced in a terse statement released Wednesday night by the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF).
The statement signed by Willie Bassey, Director of Information at the SGF’s office, added that the EFCC boss’ suspension resulted from “weighty allegations of abuse of office levelled against him.”
Mr Bawa’s suspension, the statement said, was “to allow for proper investigation into his conduct while in office.”
According to the statement, Mr Bawa has been directed to “immediately handover the affairs of his office to the Director, Operations in the Commission, who will oversee the affairs of the office of the Chairman of the Commission pending the conclusion of the investigation.”
Last month, the immediate-past governor of Zamfara State, Bello Matawalle, accused Mr Bawa of demanding $2 million as a bribe from him.
But the EFCC denied Mr Matawalle’s allegation.
The anti-corruption agency in May revealed that Mr Matawalle was being investigated by it for a N70 billion fraud.
It will be recalled that leadership succession at the EFCC since its inception in 2003 has always been embroiled in controversies.
In 2021, Mr Bawa took over the helms of affairs at the commission under similar circumstances when his predecessor, Ibrahim Magu, was suspended from office by then-President Muhammadu Buhari, over allegations of corruption.
Mr Bawa became the second major appointee of former President Muhammadu Buhari to be suspended by Mr Tinubu.
However, following his suspension, the EFCC chairman was invited by the Department of State Security, DSS and he promptly submitted himself for interrogation. Bawa who is still in the custody of the DSS as the time of filing this report, is said to being grilled over the allegations raised against him.
Read SSS full statement on Mr Bawa’s detention below:
DSS INVITES MR ABDULRASHEED BAWA, SUSPENDED EFCC CHAIRMAN
The Department of State Services (DSS) has invited Mr Abdulrasheed Bawa, the suspended Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC). Bawa arrived a few hours ago.
The invitation relates to some investigative activities concerning him.
Peter Afunanya Ph.D, fsi
Public Relations Officer
Department of State Services
National Headquarters
Abuja
14th June, 2023
